 |
|
|
|
|
May 30, 2005
WHEN I WAS A KID...
... There were certain sporting events I would always try to watch on television. The Olympics, Kentucky Derby, The Tour de France, Evil Knievel on ABC's Wide World of Sports, and the Indianapolis 500, were all as much a part of my social consciousness as was anything else. So imagine how excited I was when I moved to Indianapolis, home of the Indy 500, which is just a couple of hours away from Churchill Downs, home of The Kentucky Derby.
A couple of years ago I attended my first--and commented to myself, "last"--Indianapolis 500. While the race itself was unremarkable, the event is a must see. The sheer power of the cars combined with the unfathomable size of the crowd, made it a truly awesome experience. But the noise was too much for these ears, so I swore I'd never go back to the track on race day unless it was at the invitation of someone who had an extra ticket for one of the glassed-in box seats that hovers above the start/finish line.
While I've almost completely ruled out watching the race in person, I still enjoy catching it on television, which you'd think would be an easy thing to do if you live in the town were the race is run, but noooooooo, it's not. The live ABC telecast of the race is blacked out locally, and is shown as a live replay in primetime the night of the race. What this means is that if you want to watch the race without knowing ahead of time who won, you have to inform everyone you speak to to not tell you the outcome, and you have to avoid all local radio and television leading up to the rebroadcast of the race. In short, a giant pain in the you-know-what!
Luckily, since the holiday weekend is devoted to Part II of last weekend's Spring Cleaning, I had little time for watching television. Ironically, as much as I wanted to watch the race, I fell asleep before the final lap, and didn't find out until just a few minutes ago who won.
Next year, I'm definitely headed down to Louisville to watch The Kentucky Derby in person!
Posted by Mikal at May 30, 2005 7:28 AM
| TrackBack
FUN Post Mikal! Ahhh, the month of May and Memories. Thanks for sharing yours{I can relate! :-}
I agree, fun post! I wanted to chime in since I grew up in Louisville, KY, home of the Kentucky Derby and have attended many in my time. The fastest 2 minutes in sports is definitely an event worth seeing, the sheer power yet grace of the horses is awe-inspiring however don't except it to be unlike the Indy 500 in many respects. The noise level won't be anything like the 500, but depending on where you sit, you won't be able to escape the mass of humanity. A tip: get a seat in the boxes and avoid the infamous infield. If you choose the infield, you'll see drunk people using the restroom where there is no restroom, people getting naked and all sorts of other crazy sights, but you won't see one horse because the crowd obstructs the view.
I agree, fun post! I wanted to chime in since I grew up in Louisville, KY, home of the Kentucky Derby and have attended many in my time. The fastest 2 minutes in sports is definitely an event worth seeing, the sheer power yet grace of the horses is awe-inspiring however don't except it to be unlike the Indy 500 in many respects. The noise level won't be anything like the 500, but depending on where you sit, you won't be able to escape the mass of humanity. A tip: get a seat in the boxes and avoid the infamous infield. If you choose the infield, you'll see drunk people using the restroom where there is no restroom, people getting naked and all sorts of other crazy sights, but you won't see one horse because the crowd obstructs the view.
Good Post. I think you should give the 500 a try again. Be sure to bring your ear plugs this time. I would agree the race the last few years has not been that exciting, but Sundays was the best in years.
This year, having a suite ticket didn't turn out to be as critical as in past years.. because the weather was soooooo nice. However, it sure is nice to be able to use a CLEAN restroom, enjoy a snack, socialize with co-workers and have a mixed drink at the track....all while in the luxury of a suite.
I'm looking forward to the suites for F1 racing in a couple weeks!!
Post a Comment:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
